XX-level Hokage

As for whether Mashiro was right or wrong, she was actually just guessing, because she knew Itachi would never kill her. Just then...

Sasuke swiftly threw out two scrolls, which turned into smoke in mid-air. Itachi used his other eye to observe the smoke, which appeared to be just ordinary mist. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique"

As soon as the mist dissipated, Sasuke instantly unleashed a ninjutsu.

The flames touched the smoke, instantly igniting it and turning the entire shrine into a sea of ​​fire. Itachi reacted instantly, breaking through the wooden partition and reaching the rooftop, with Sasuke following closely behind. "What, afraid to face those flames representing revenge?" Sasuke said coldly, looking at Itachi from the rooftop.

Itachi ignored Sasuke's words and instantly formed hand seals. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique"

Seeing this, Sasuke quickly formed hand seals as well.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique. Two balls of flame clash."

"Unexpectedly, Sasuke actually came out on top." White Zetsu said in disbelief. Black Zetsu responded calmly.

"It's coming." "Amaterasu"

Black flames appeared out of thin air and were engulfed by Itachi's Fireball Jutsu, instantly suppressing Sasuke's flames and attacking him. Just then, Sasuke gently hooked his hand.

Two Claw Clan ninjas appeared out of thin air, blocking the attack of the black flames and burning to ashes. "What is this? What strange creatures," White Zetsu said, looking at the Claw Clan ninjas that had appeared out of nowhere.

Black Zetsu didn't answer; his eyes were also full of confusion. Just then, Sasuke rushed towards Itachi.

Blood kept flowing from Itachi's eyes, and black flames kept appearing around Sasuke.

But Sasuke, in his "mask" form, was incredibly fast, and all the incoming Amaterasu attacks missed their mark. Sasuke instantly appeared beside Itachi and kicked out.

Itachi reached out to block, but Sasuke's strength at that moment far exceeded his expectations. Itachi was instantly sent flying, crashing heavily into the chimney window. Itachi quickly got up and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

But Sasuke's attack came again. Itachi quickly placed his hands on the ground. "Earth Release: Earth Wall!"

An earthen wall appeared instantly, blocking Sasuke's attack.

Then Itachi instantly created three clones, each running in a different direction. "Itachi, do you think you can escape like this?" Sasuke mocked.

In response, Itachi said, "Your current state should have a time limit, and with such a significant increase in power, you shouldn't be able to use Shadow Clone Jutsu. I just need to stall until your time is up."

Itachi quickly noticed the flaw in the "mask".

"Is that so? But Itachi, you can't escape." After Sasuke finished speaking, he stretched out his palm, and dozens of shadowy soldiers from the Claw Gang emerged from the shadows and attacked the two Itachis.

Sasuke himself swiftly charged towards the nearest Itachi. "Thud!"

Itachi sighed softly and dispelled the clone technique.

"What, are you surrendering?"

Sasuke rushed over quickly. "Shadow Extreme Chidori".

Black power, crackling with lightning, appeared on Sasuke's right hand, and a black Chidori was born. The terrifying power, combined with the upgraded Chidori, swiftly reached Itachi.

It struck directly at Itachi's body. But it made no move.

An orange-red skeleton appeared out of thin air, blocking Sasuke's attack. With the attack ineffective, Sasuke quickly retreated.

Looking at the orange-red skeleton protecting the itachi within his body, he asked with a grave expression, "What is this?"

Chapter 152: The Ten-Fist Sword

"Without this, I might really have been killed. I've really become stronger, Sasuke. This time, I'll show you my final trump card."

"The technique of Sasuke." Itachi's face was extremely pale, and blood was flowing from the corner of his mouth.

"Susanoo?!" Sasuke exclaimed, his face deathly pale. At that moment, the "mask's" duration ended.

"This is another ninjutsu that resides in these eyes when Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu awaken. Sasuke, is this the end of your ninjutsu? If you still have hidden power, don't hesitate to use it. The real show is just beginning." Itachi coughed up blood, looked at Sasuke, and said.

“Sasuke’s duration in that state has ended,” Black Zetsu, who was observing from the shadows, said gravely.

At this moment, flesh and blood began to emerge from the skeleton of the Susanoo summoned by Itachi. The flesh and blood intertwined, making the Susanoo even more terrifying.

Seeing this, Sasuke's eyes showed confusion and panic, and he involuntarily took a step back. "What's wrong? Are you helpless because you've run out of chakra?" Rong said softly.

Sasuke's face was extremely pale, but at that moment, Orochimaru's voice echoed in his mind. "Do you need power? I can lend you power."

Immediately afterward, the cursed seal on Sasuke's body began to throb with pain, as if it were tearing his body apart. "Damn it! Is Orochimaru still alive?" Sasuke muttered, rubbing his forehead.

"You need me now, Sasuke-kun. Don't you want revenge against Itachi? Come, unleash my power, and your wish will be fulfilled..."

Orochimaru's words kept echoing in Sasuke's mind. "Aa ...

A sharp pain shot through him, the Heavenly Curse was unleashed, and eight white snakes emerged. Meanwhile, in the other half, at the headquarters of "Root," in Kabuto's laboratory...

The part of the plant that Kabuto had deliberately left behind, bearing Sasuke's Heavenly Curse Seal, began to revive rapidly, as if it were faintly gaining consciousness. Seeing this, Kabuto sensed something was wrong and quickly disappeared into the shadows.

At this moment, Mashiro was still in the study, holding Shiro. A knock came at the door.

“Master, someone is looking for you,” Tayuya said.

Upon hearing this, Mashiro placed Shiro on a chair and said, "I'm going out for a while." "Okay," Shiro replied obediently.

Going downstairs to the living room, Kabuto was anxiously waiting. "What's wrong, Kabuto?" Mashiro asked softly.

"Lord Mashiro, Orochimaru is not dead," Kabuto said with a serious expression. "Oh, is that so?" Mashiro poured Kabuto a cup of tea and said nonchalantly.

Kabuto respectfully accepted the tea and said, "It's like this, Lord Mashiro. I just observed in my experiment that the part of the Heaven's Seal that was taken from Sasuke suddenly showed signs of revival, and it was a conscious revival. If that's the case, Orochimaru might be able to be resurrected in Sasuke's body."

“Don’t worry, I already guessed that,” Mashiro said softly.

Just as Kabuto was about to say something, he suddenly remembered that the Seki no Kagami seal on Sasuke's body was something Shinichi had requested to be preserved.

This was indeed within Mashiro's expectations. After all, Orochimaru could reincarnate into too many bodies, and she couldn't guarantee she could completely kill him. Therefore, she deliberately preserved the Heaven's Seal on Sasuke's body. Orochimaru had been controlling the Uchiha clan's power for a long time, and given the opportunity, he could use it...

They will definitely not let Sasuke's body go.

This way, it can be left to Itachi.

In the duel with Itachi, Sasuke will inevitably exhaust his chakra, and due to the backlash of the "mask" state, Sasuke's physical strength and mental strength will also be greatly weakened, which is the best opportunity for Orochimaru to take over Sasuke's body.

In order to ensure Orochimaru's plan to seize the body would proceed smoothly, Mashiro even deliberately disabled the counterattack function of the mask on Sasuke's body. It should be noted that Sasuke's body was inhabited by the power of a general of the Shadow Legion. If Orochimaru wanted to seize the body, he would definitely be instantly killed by the counterattack of the mask.

"Let Itachi handle this. Hopefully, the Totsuka Blade can completely destroy Orochimaru," Mashiro muttered to himself as he entered the study. Accompanied by Sasuke's agonizing screams, white snakes continued to emerge.

Sasuke put on the purple mask, as if he wanted to do something, but then stopped moving as if he had received some kind of command.

Finally, all eight white snakes emerged, enormous, like a colossal beast. The weasel watched the scene with icy eyes.

"Is this... Orochimaru's Eight-Headed Serpent Technique?" Itachi muttered to himself. "What is that?" White Zetsu, witnessing this, asked softly.

“Sasuke’s own chakra was already exhausted, but he still forced out more power, so Orochimaru’s suppressed chakra escaped to the outside,” Black Zetsu explained.

At this moment, Itachi, carrying the enormous Susanoo, walked forward step by step. Orochi, dragging Sasuke's body, also walked towards Itachi, and the two met.

One of the Yamata no Orochi's heads instantly charged towards Itachi's Susanoo, but a sword instantly appeared in Itachi's right hand, severing the attacking snake head in a flash.

Three more snake heads charged at Itachi's Susanoo, but a shield appeared in Itachi's left hand, blocking the attack. Then Itachi swung his sword and slashed, and three more tongues fell to the ground.

Of the remaining three snake heads, two quickly moved forward and tightly bound Itachi's Susanoo.

Itachi controlled Susanoo and swung his sword again, sending two more snake heads crashing to the ground. The Yamata no Orochi was now reduced to its last head.

The snake's head opened its mouth, and Orochimaru's image appeared in its throat.

"What was bound to happen, did indeed happen," he said softly.

Although Sasuke has stayed in Konoha all these years, Itachi is still concerned about the cursed seal Orochimaru left on Sasuke. He knows Orochimaru well and has always been wary of such a madman.

But for some reason, the Orochimaru who appeared did not speak, and his expression was very wooden.

However, due to his impaired eyesight, Rong didn't notice this. The sword in Susanoo's hand pierced Orochimaru's body in an instant.

In an instant, Orochimaru's body began to melt. "What's with that sword?" Hyakuzetsu asked in astonishment.

"The Totsuka Blade, also known as the Sealing Sword of the Sake-Slaying Sword, is said to imprison those struck by it in a world of illusionary magic, where one is permanently sealed away. The sword itself is a strike from the Kusanagi Sword, which possesses sealing techniques. Orochimaru has been searching for it," Black Zetsu said.

"Itachi is indeed incredibly powerful," Whitebeard unconsciously exclaimed. "It's over, Sasuke."

As the Totsuka Blade sealed Orochimaru, Itachi said softly.

At this moment, Itachi finally couldn't hold on any longer, coughing up large amounts of blood and collapsing to the ground. "What happened? Itachi's ninjutsu?" White Zetsu asked upon seeing this.

“That ninjutsu called Susanoo seems to be quite a burden,” Black Zetsu said.

However, Sasuke can't even use his Sharingan now, and his cursed seal has been stripped away. This is already Itachi's victory, isn't it? "White Zetsu said, looking at Sasuke who reappeared after the Yamata no Orochi disappeared."

"Now your eyes are mine," Itachi said coldly. At this moment, his eyes had completely turned gray-black.

"Let me take it down slowly, cough cough cough..."

As Itachi spoke, he clutched his chest and coughed violently again, blood flowing continuously. "Itachi's behavior is a bit strange right now," Black Zetsu said.

Itachi coughed up blood and knelt on the ground. His Susanoo also reverted to its original form, Rin. Seeing this, Sasuke quickly pulled out explosive shuriken from his ninja pouch and fired them at the enemy.

Chapter 153: Konan and Samui (Part 1)

The explosion brought a cloud of smoke, which dissipated, revealing Itachi unharmed. His Susanoo had used its shield to block Sasuke's attack.

Itachi struggled to his feet and walked step by step toward Sasuke. Sasuke retreated in fear.

In a panic, Sasuke threw out all the explosive shuriken from his ninja bag. Explosions rang out continuously, but only made Itachi pause for a moment.

"That ninjutsu called Susanoo, that shield can deflect all attacks," White Zetsu exclaimed in surprise.

"That's right, that's also a magical artifact, something called the Eight-Foot Mirror that can deflect everything, and it also has the Ten-Fist Sword attack, making it practically invincible," Black Zetsu exclaimed in amazement.

Your eyes... mine

Itachi approached Sasuke with trembling steps.

Seeing this, Sasuke mustered his last strength and leaped up to attack Itachi. He was instantly repelled by the Yata Mirror and crashed heavily to the ground.

Sasuke struggled to get up, but Itachi was already in front of him.

Sasuke retreated in panic, but there was a stone wall behind him, forcing him to lean against it.

Itachi extended his blood-stained right hand towards Sasuke. Sasuke had no way to avoid it.

Itachi extended his hand towards Sasuke, and at that moment, Itachi seemed to laugh and whispered something. Then he gently touched Sasuke's forehead with his finger.

Immediately afterward, Itachi's hand fell, leaving a bloody gash on Sasuke's face. Rin collapsed, and Susanoo disintegrated.

Itachi's head slammed against the wall, and his entire body crashed heavily to the ground. Sasuke gasped for breath.

The surrounding Amaterasu began to burn, and rain suddenly started to fall. "You can't be kidding, itachi died then?" White Zetsu asked incredulously. "Sasuke won," Black Zetsu said calmly.

"It's really hard to accept this willingly," White Zetsu said. "What's wrong?" Black Zetsu asked.

"Itachi's abilities should be more than this, and his movements are quite sluggish. Didn't you also say that his appearance was a bit strange?" White Zetsu said.